Shoes Ko Day (as promised)

It's 3 am. My husband and I are are lucky enough to have a view of the skyline and by the looks of it, some people are still up and about in the City of Lights.

Yes, the deed is done, the papers have been signed, rings were exchanged, we are married and I am way behind on my blogging duties, but I must not skip ahead because before anything, I've got to tell this cinderella story.

There was a time in my life when I was most known for my colorful, striped socks. Pulling open my sock drawer was like opening a box of crayons. An officemate called me "Rainbow Brite," in Barcelona a Portuguese photographer called me "Rainbow Girl," and when I decided to grow my hair and wear florals, an acquaintance saw me on the train but couldn't decide if it was me so she looked at my feet to look for identifying marks. She wasn't disappointed.

You see, I used to be a total boy, and while now and then I would try wearing skirts and shorts, I could never let go of the socks.  I was Linus, and the socks, my security blanket. But something happened to me a few years ago, something that gave me so much confidence I hardly noticed I had stopped wearing socks every day. I had finally embraced womanhood. Oh man, it was epic. Shopping-wise.

I retired my old clothes, my credit card finally saw the inside of trendy fashion showrooms, and I started wearing ballet flats and sandals --- without socks. I felt naked at first, feeling the heat of the sun on my toes was a novelty. Friends were shocked to see my feet, not to mention my legs which were whiter than the rest of me. But there was one challenge I couldn't stand up to - HEELS.

I am a total disaster on pumps, wedges, kitten heels and of course stilettos. Every few months I would give it a go at the department store, but I couldn't manage to walk like I was sober. Not that I was very slick in sneakers either, a lot of people have witnessed me stumble on my own toes. No kidding.

Fast forward to May 2010, I had four months until the wedding and I couldn't find the right kind of blue, with the right kind of fabric, with the right kind of height. So I searched every shelf in every department store, shoe store, hardware store and drug store in Manila.

There were the too-high-pairs from Stella Luna, and a super sexy pair from Janylin that wanted to murder me the first two seconds I tried standing on my puppies. Some more brands followed, but it seemed the only shoes they make for women these days have heels 4 inches or higher.

 These were really blue, I forgot to white balance.

There was an almost perfect pair I found in a dusty, forsaken part of Landmark Makati that could have ended all my frutiless searches, if only their last size wasn’t 5. My feet are an undecided eight or nine, unfortunately. And that was the only nice shoe they had!

These were almost perfect, and cheap!!! 

Plus, the heels were only half an inch high.

I was tempted to do a wicked stepsister and cut my toes off.

These ballroom dancing shoes were about 3 inches high, 

but they had rhinestone clasps and were a bit Wicked Witch of the West-y. 

Which would be great for walking around in, just not very wedding-y... I think.

The way things were going, I was afraid I would march in the only blue footwear I had:

It's so Yagit 2.0!

It seemed hopeless until I met Project Runway Philippines designer/stylist who gave me the idea of having my shoes custom made. Luckily, I found a shoemaker in Marikina who said she could make a replica of the Loubotin shoes I like in the same color but with much shorter heels.

Look at the swatches! They can make anything! 

And sadly, the CAN make anything.

I went to their shop once for measurements and instructions about heel height and thickness, a second time for fitting and a third for pickup and to request some cleaning. It wasn't a Loubotin, for sure. There were some things about it that could have been done better but at least it fit and with a two-and-a half inch heel, I could stand in it. 

P1,500

On our wedding day we marched from his parents' house to the ceremony. One thirds of the way was rocky like above, another third was on concrete, and another third was on a traditional carpet of leaves called buis. We had lovely weather, a beautiful ceremony, and stunning pictures that relatives from back home said looked like a fairy tale. And that's how I feel about marrying H, it feels like happily ever after. The wedding party lasted 'til morning, and I was glad I didn't have to walk on glass slippers.

Still, it might have been funny to wear striped socks with the shoes, for old times' sake.